The Black Hawk War was a conflict between the United States and Native Americans led by Black Hawk, a Sauk leader. The war erupted after Black Hawk and a group of Sauks, Meskwakis (Fox), and Kickapoos, known as the "British Band", crossed the Mississippi River, into the U.S. state of Illinois, from Iowa Indian Territory in April 1832. Black Hawk's motives were ambiguous, but he was apparently hoping to reclaim land sold to the United States in the disputed 1804 Treaty of St. Louis.
Jefferson County is a county in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. As of the 2010 census, the population was 83,686. Its county seat is Jefferson. Jefferson County comprises the Watertown-Fort Atkinson, WI Micropolitan Statistical Area, which is also included in the Milwaukee-Racine-Waukesha, WI Combined Statistical Area.
Fort Atkinson is a city in Jefferson County, Wisconsin, United States. It is on the Rock River, a few miles upstream from Lake Koshkonong. The population was 12,368 at the 2010 census. Fort Atkinson is the largest city located entirely in Jefferson County, as Watertown is split between Jefferson and Dodge Counties.
Koshkonong is a town in Jefferson County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 3,692 at the 2010 census. The town entirely surrounds the city of Fort Atkinson. The unincorporated communities of Koshkonong Mounds and Vinnie Ha Ha are located in the town. The unincorporated communities of Blackhawk Island and Koshkonong is also located partially in the town.
Fort Atkinson is the name of several locations in the United States:
Lake Koshkonong is naturally occurring lake that acts as a reservoir in southern Wisconsin. Its size was augmented by the creation of the Indianford Dam in 1932, making it one of the larger lakes in the state. The lake lies along the Rock River, with the river acting as both the primary inflow and the primary outflow for the lake. Lake Koshkonong begins 5.5 mi (8.9 km) downriver from Fort Atkinson, with the large majority of the lake located in southwestern Jefferson County. Small portions of the lake extend into southeastern Dane and northern Rock counties.
The Battle of Bad Axe, also known as the Bad Axe Massacre, was a battle between Sauk (Sac) and Fox Indians and United States Army regulars and militia that occurred on August 1–2, 1832. This final battle of the Black Hawk War took place near present-day Victory, Wisconsin in the United States. It marked the end of the war between white settlers and militia in Illinois and Michigan Territory, and the Sauk and Fox tribes under warrior Black Hawk.
Fort Winnebago was a 19th-century fortification of the United States Army located on a hill overlooking the eastern end of the portage between the Fox and Wisconsin Rivers east of present-day Portage, Wisconsin. It was the middle one of three fortifications along the Fox-Wisconsin Waterway that also included Fort Howard in Green Bay, Wisconsin and Fort Crawford in Prairie du Chien, Wisconsin. Fort Winnebago was constructed in 1828 as part of an effort to maintain peace between white settlers and the region's Native American tribes following the Winnebago War of 1827. The fort's location was chosen not only because of its proximity to the site of Red Bird's surrender in the Winnebago War, but also because of the strategic importance of the portage on the Fox-Wisconsin Waterway, a heavily traveled connection between the Great Lakes and the Mississippi River. Fort Winnebago's location near the portage allowed it to regulate transportation between the lakes and the Mississippi.
The Bark River is a tributary of the Rock River, about 67.5 miles (108.6 km) long, in southeastern Wisconsin in the United States. Via the Rock River, it is part of the watershed of the Mississippi River. According to the Geographic Names Information System, it has also been known historically as the "Peelbark River". The Bark River rises in southern Washington County at Bark Lake In Richfield, WI and flows generally southwestwardly through Waukesha and Jefferson counties, past the communities of Hartland, Delafield, Summit Dousman and Rome, and through several small lakes. It joins the Rock River in Jefferson County just east of Fort Atkinson. In Jefferson County the Bark River collects the Scuppernong River.
State Trunk Highway 106 is a state highway in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. It runs east–west in southeastern Wisconsin between Albion and Palmyra, Jefferson County.
The Battle of Horseshoe Bend, also referred to as the Battle of Pecatonica and the Battle of Bloody Lake, was fought on June 16, 1832 in present-day Wisconsin at an oxbow lake known as "Horseshoe Bend", which was formed by a change in course of the Pecatonica River. The battle was a major turning point in the Black Hawk War, despite being of only minor military significance. The small victory won by the U.S. militia at Horseshoe Bend helped restore public confidence in the volunteer force following an embarrassing defeat at Stillman's Run. The Battle of Horseshoe Bend ended with three militia men killed in action and a party of eleven Kickapoo warriors dead.
The Spafford Farm massacre, also referred to as the Wayne massacre, was an attack upon U.S. militia and civilians that occurred as part of the Black Hawk War near present-day South Wayne, Wisconsin. Spafford Farm was settled in 1830 by Omri Spafford and his partner Francis Spencer.
The Battle of Wisconsin Heights was the penultimate engagement of the 1832 Black Hawk War, fought between the United States state militia and allies, and the Sauk and Fox tribes, led by Black Hawk. The battle took place in what is now Dane County, near present-day Sauk City, Wisconsin. Despite being vastly outnumbered and sustaining heavy casualties, Black Hawk's warriors managed to delay the combined government forces long enough to allow the majority of the Sauk and Fox civilians in the group to escape across the Wisconsin River. This reprieve was temporary; when the militia finally caught up with the fleeing band it resulted in the Bad Axe massacre at the mouth of the Bad Axe River.
The Sinsinawa Mound raid occurred on June 29, 1832, near the Sinsinawa mining settlement in Michigan Territory. This incident, part of the Black Hawk War, resulted in the deaths of two men; a third man survived by seeking cover in a nearby blockhouse. In the aftermath of the raid, Captain James W. Stephenson set out to pursue the attackers—a straggling band of Sauk Native Americans—but lost their trail at the Mississippi River. The attack occurred in the same week as other skirmishes and raids, and as a result helped contribute to the growing fear in the region. The raid caused the residents of nearby Platteville to consider fleeing their settlement.
Fort Defiance was one of the last garrisoned stockade forts constructed in territorial Wisconsin. It was located approximately five miles southeast of Mineral Point, Wisconsin. It was located in the booming lead mining region in an area of early settlement. The fort was built by local settlers in 1832 when developing tensions over Native American land rights erupted into the Black Hawk War. Although Fort Defiance did not experience attack, it did have a garrison of about 40 militia men who were said to be among the best drilled in the territory. Fort Defiance had two blockhouses located at opposite corners of the stockade. Within the walls were two buildings used to accommodate the garrison and the families of settlers in case of a siege. There are no visible remains.
Fort Dixon, located along the banks of the Rock River in present day Dixon, Illinois, served as a military base during the Black Hawk War.
Alexander Posey was an American militia officer who served as a brigadier general under General Henry Atkinson during the Black Hawk War, specifically in the later stages of the second campaign as one of the commanders present at the Battle of Bad Axe.
Milton King Alexander was an American politician and militia officer who served during the War of 1812, the Seminole Wars and, most notably, as a brigadier general during the Black Hawk War.
Fort Hamilton was a frontier fort constructed in present-day Wiota, Wisconsin during the 1832 Black Hawk War.
Fort Jackson was a frontier fort located in Mineral Point, Michigan Territory, and constructed during the 1832 Black Hawk War.
